Tag Archives: 2017 Eastern Conference Final

The DTFR Duo honors Ted Lindsay, addresses a potential outdoor game hosted by the Carolina Hurricanes, talk John Tavares’ “welcome” back to Long Island, can’t figure out the Ottawa Senators coaching change circus and more.

Colby makes his return to the podcast for the first time since… Anyway, Nick and Colby discuss the ongoing 2017 Eastern and Western Conference Finals matchups between Pittsburgh and Ottawa, as well as Anaheim and Nashville. Nick makes several plugs for brands that should sponsor the podcast and invites Ilya Bryzgalov to join the show for an episode. Also discussed, Buffalo stuff and why Dallas shouldn’t trade the 3rd overall pick.

The Ottawa Senators cruised to a 5-1 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 3 of the 2017 Eastern Conference Final on Wednesday night. Mike Hoffman, Marc Methot, Derick Brassard, Zack Smith and Kyle Turris each had a goal in the Senators’ win. Ottawa takes the 2-1 series lead into Game 4 on Friday.

Craig Anderson made 25 saves on 26 shots against for a .962 save percentage in the win, while Marc-Andre Fleury made 5 saves on 9 shots faced in 12:52 of playing time for a .556 SV% before being replaced by Matthew Murray in the loss. Murray made 19 saves on 20 shots faced for the Penguins, amassing a .950 SV% in 46:57 time on ice.

Hoffman (5) kicked off a string of four unanswered goals in the 1st period just 48 seconds into the game for Ottawa. Alexandre Burrows sent a pass to Turris who fired a shot that caromed to Hoffman’s stick before Hoffman sniped a shot past Fleury to put the Sens up 1-0. Turris (4) and Burrows (5) were credited with the assists on the goal.

Although Hoffman’s goal came not even a minute into the game, Peter Regin’s franchise record for the fastest goal to start a playoff game in Senators’ history (18 seconds into Game 2 of the 2010 Eastern Conference Quarterfinals) went untouched.

Fleury took a shot off the mask before Methot found the puck in front of the goal for his 2nd goal of the 2017 Stanley Cup Playoffs at 10:34 of the 1st period. Methot’s goal gave Ottawa a 2-0 lead and kicked off a string of three goals in a span of 2:18 for the Senators. Bobby Ryan (7) and Brassard (7) were credited with the primary and secondary assists on Methot’s goal.

Brassard (4) took advantage of the fact that the Penguins couldn’t get the puck out of their own zone, resulting in a scoring chance Ryan, who fired a shot that was blocked by a Pittsburgh forward. Clarke MacArthur found the loose puck and slide it across the slot to the awaiting Brassard on the doorstep of the goal. Brassard easily made it 3-0 Ottawa, while MacArthur (5) and Ryan (8) celebrated the helpers on the goal at 12:28 of the 1st.

Almost 30 seconds later, Smith (1) notched his first of the postseason on a wraparound goal that forced Pittsburgh’s head coach, Mike Sullivan, to make a change in goal. Methot (2) and Erik Karlsson (12) had the assists on the goal that chased Fleury just 12:52 into the game. Murray took over for the Penguins in net, trailing 4-0.

Upon the completion of three goals in 2:18, the Senators had set a franchise record for the fastest three goals scored in a playoff game (Methot, Brassard and Smith in 2:18 of the 1st period). Martin Havlat, Radek Bonk and Shane Hnidy had previously held the record (three goals in a 4:00 span) in a 5-0 shutout over the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals on May 2, 2002.

After one period, Ottawa led 4-0 on the scoreboard and had dominated just about everything else, including a 74%-26% advantage in face-off wins over the Penguins.

Turris (4) added a goal of his own on a give-and-go rush with Hoffman with 1:42 remaining in the 2nd period. With a quick deke through the Penguins’ defense, Turris slid the puck past a desperate Murray. Hoffman (4) and Fredrik Claesson (2) were credited with the assists on Turris’s goal which made it a 5-0 game for the Senators.

Penalties amassed in the 2nd period, but none more than at the very end of the period, where Smith racked up a goaltender interference minor, Jean-Gabriel Pageau picked up a roughing call and Evgeni Malkin notched a roughing minor of his own. Despite it all, the Penguins would begin the 3rd period with a normal 5-on-4 power play.

In addition to the number of penalties adding up, yet another injury occurred in the series as Burrows left the game with a lower body injury sustained in the 2nd period and did not return. Patric Hornqvist, Bryan Rust and Justin Schultz were all kept out of the lineup for Game 3 as announced hours before puck drop due to injuries from the previous game.

The Senators were successful on the penalty kill to begin the 3rd period and were quickly thrust onto the power play when Matt Cullen was sent to the box for slashing at 2:19 of the 3rd. Ottawa was unable to convert on the man advantage and instead committed an infraction of their own moments later when Hoffman was called for tripping.

While on the power play, Pittsburgh’s Phil Kessel fired a shot towards Anderson that was redirected by Sidney Crosby and snuck through Anderson’s five-hole. Crosby (5) had ended Anderson’s shutout bid with a Penguins power play goal that was assisted by the red-hot (like a hot dog– okay, jokes aside, he’s been fantastic) Kessel (9) and Mark Streit (1).

Ottawa’s lead was now 5-1 with over 15 minutes left in regulation.

For the second game in a row, Malkin picked up a 10-minute misconduct in the closing minutes of the game after a scrum broke out with 1:56 to go in regulation. Mark Stone amassed two roughing minors, while Scott Wilson also received a minor penalty for roughing. Ryan served one of Stone’s roughing penalties as the Senators finished the game shorthanded.

With the 5-1 victory in Game 3, Ottawa now leads the series 2-1 heading into Game 4 on home ice on Friday. Puck drop at Canadian Tire Centre is scheduled for a little after 8 p.m. ET and the game will be televised nationally on NBCSN in the United States and on CBC, as well as TVA Sports, across Canada.

Phil Kessel and the Pittsburgh Penguins broke through Craig Anderson and the Ottawa Senators late in the 3rd period to seal the deal on a 1-0 victory in Game 2 of the 2017 Eastern Conference Final.

After losing in overtime in Game 1 at PPG Paints Arena, the Penguins were hopeful to knot the series up 1-1 and pressure the Senators to perform for their own crowd heading to Ottawa for Game 3. Pressuring the Senators is exactly what Pittsburgh did for 60 minutes on Monday night.

Marc-Andre Fleury had 22 saves in the shutout win for Pittsburgh, while Anderson made 26 saves on 27 shots faced for a .966 save percentage in the loss.

After a thrilling 1st period witnessed both teams swapping scoring chance for scoring chance and hit for hit, neither team had found the scoreboard.

Bryan Rust was injured on a huge hit delivered by Dion Phaneuf early in the period, but he wasn’t the only Penguin to go down with an injury and not return for the rest of the game in the opening frame as. Pittsburgh defenseman Justin Schultz was sidelined for the night with an injury of his own.

The Senators led the Penguins 10-8 in shots on goal and 8-4 in blocked shots after 20 minutes of play, while Pittsburgh dominated the physical game with 19 hits to Ottawa’s 11. The Penguins also had a slight advantage in face-off wins, having on 53% of them compared to the Senators 47% successful mark on the face-off dot in the 1st period.

The 2nd period saw more of the same with both teams in a tight battle of “which goaltender will be the first to crack?” Still 0-0 after 40 minutes of play, the Penguins led 20-16 in SOG, 34-24 in hits, 59-42% in face-off wins, while Ottawa continued to use the body for more than just hitting, racking up a 13-5 advantage in blocked shots.

It wasn’t until 6:55 remaining in the 3rd period that the game saw its first goal.

Kessel (6) received a pass from Evgeni Malkin on a rush, then shot the puck in the direction of the goal only to be blocked by Jean-Gabriel Pageau. After quickly recovering the rebound, Kessel snuck a wrist shot low and under Anderson’s left pad to make it 1-0 Pittsburgh. Malkin (14) and Olli Maatta (5) were credited with the primary and secondary assists on the game’s only (and game winning) goal.

With less than 15 seconds to go in the game and the goaltender pulled, Ottawa’s skaters could not stay out of trouble on an icing call. Kyle Turris promptly took exception to some words that were exchanged and a shoving match ensued, leaving Turris with a slashing minor and a misconduct. Pittsburgh’s Chris Kunitz (roughing) and Malkin (misconduct) also racked up penalties and the game finished 4-on-4.

Of note, Ottawa failed to record a shot in the 3rd period until 15:06 into the final frame of regulation. Pittsburgh had already fired 8 shots on Anderson by the time the Senators presented Fleury with his first challenge of the 3rd.

The series is now tied, 1-1, with Game 3 set to take place in Ottawa on Wednesday. Puck drop at Canadian Tire Centre is scheduled for a little after 8 p.m. ET and viewers in the United States can catch the action on NBCSN, while Canadian residents can tune to CBC and/or TVA Sports.